The Armed Forces' inventory includes equipment from different countries around the world. Equipment from the former Soviet Union is being progressively replaced by more modern US, French, and British equipment, a significant portion of which is built under license in Egypt, such as the M1 Abramstank. Egypt remains a strong military and strategic partner and is a participant in NATO's Mediterranean Dialogue forum. The Egyptian military is one of the strongest in the region,[2] and gives Egypt regional military supremacy rivaled only by Israel,[3] besides being one of the strongest in Africa.[4] Egypt is one of the few countries in the Middle East, and the only Arab state, with a reconnaissance satellite and has launched another one in 2007.[5] and other in 2014.

In January 2011, a delegation led by the chief of staff of Egypt's armed forces, Lt. Gen. Sami Hafez Enan, was in Washington, D.C., although the visit was truncated due to the protests. The sessions, an annual country-to-country military coordination, were being led for the U.S. by Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Alexander Vershbow. A meeting with Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, and other talks had been planned to extend to 2 February. However, in light of events in Egypt, the delegation left Washington to return home.[6] Before their Friday night departure, Vershbow urged the two dozen Egyptian military representatives "to exercise 'restraint'".[7]

On Sunday 12 August 2012, new president Mohamed Morsi announced a series of military appointments. Hussein Tantawi, the minister of defence and the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, were both retired.[9] Morsi also retired Sami Anan, the Army’s Chief of Staff. Morsi awarded both men state medals and appointed them as advisors to the president. Thirdly, the president appointed the head of the military intelligence, Abdul Fatah al-Sisi, as Minister of Defence to replace Tantawi. Sedki Sobhi, the commander of the Third Army, was appointed as Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces. Morsi also retired the Commander of the Navy, Mohab Memish, and appointed him as head of the Suez Canal Authority.

On 3 July 2013 in response to millions of Egyptians demands demonstrating in streets all over Egypt since 30 June 2013, the head of the Egyptian Armed Forces, then-Colonel General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, announced President Mohamed Morsi removal from power, suspension of the constitution, and new presidential and House of Representatives elections. The severe crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood commenced.[10] responding to mass demonstrations took streets all over Egypt.[11][12][13][14][14][15]

The U.S. provides annual military assistance to the Egyptian Armed Forces. In 2009, the U.S. provided nominal $1.3 billion to the Egyptian military ($1.43 billion in 2015).[16][17] Much of this is in equipment such as tanks and jet fighters that are surplus to Egyptian needs and kept in storage.[18]

According to the Egyptian Constitution, Article 200, The Armed Forces belong to the People, and their duty is to protect the country, and preserve its security and the integrity of its territories.

The Armed Forces enjoy considerable power, prestige and independence within the Egyptian state.[19] During almost the entire history of the Republic of Egypt, active or retired military officers have been head of the Egyptian state. The first democratically-elected president who served for one year was removed by a military coup after mass protests against him throughout Egypt. Even the constitution drafted and passed under Morsi included protections for the military from legal and parliamentary oversight,[20] and deferred to "objections from the country’s military leadership" by removing a "clear prohibition on trials of civilians before military courts" some drafters had tried to include.[21]

The military has its own hospitals, factories, clubs, and gas stations staffed by its officers, soldiers, and civilians. The organization is influential in business circles, engaging in road and housing construction, consumer goods, resort management,[19] and owning extensive tracts of real estate. Much military information is not made publicly available, including budget information, the names of the general officers and the military’s size (which is considered a state secret).[19] According to journalist Joshua Hammer, "as much as 40% of the Egyptian economy" is controlled by the Egyptian military.[24] the number which is described as a "myth" by some economists and journalists and contribution considered by some as "necessary" for the Egyptian economy and the needs of the Armed Forces to maintains its strength.[25]

Egyptian Armed Forces, consists of several main branches, departments and authorities. Main branches are the Army, the Air Forces, the Air Defense, and the Navy.

The Egyptian Army is administratively divided into 4 tactical commands (Northern, Western, Central, Southern command), each command is under control of a Major General in addition to two armies (2nd, 3rd army) and different corps and divisions (Armor, Mechanized, Artillery, Airmobile, Airborne, Infantry, frontier, military police, intelligence, Republican guards, Special Forces). The Egyptian Air Force (EAF) are the second biggest branch under control of the armed forces. The EAF has over 1,309 combat aircraft, 321 armed helicopters and controls about 17 air base. The Egyptian Navy is the largest branch under the armed forces' control, it is the largest navy in the Middle East and Africa, and is the seventh largest in the world measured by the number of vessels. The Egyptian Air Defense Forces is the latest established branch in the Armed Forces consists of 30,000 officers & soldiers plus 40,000 conscripts.

Departments of the Egyptian Armed Forces include the Departments of Armament Affairs, Officers' Affairs, Management and Administration and the Department of Morale Affairs (DMA) which is responsible for managing the Egyptian Armed Forces' public image, boosting goodwill towards troops, writing the speeches of the Armed forces' public statements, contacting the media and organizing the Egyptian Armed Forces' conferences and symposiums. Moreover, The Medical management of the armed forces is responsible for managing the medical affairs of the armed forces as well as controlling the hospitals run by the Armed Forces which serves both civilians and military personnel estimated at 19 hospitals in Cairo, 8 in Alexandria, 3 in Matrouh, 2 in each of Ismailia and Gharbia, one in each of Port Said, Al Sharqia, Dakahlia, Beni Suef, Minya, Sohag, Qena, Aswan, Kafr el-Sheikh, and North Sinai.[26]

Authorities of the armed forces include the Engineering Authority (EAAF), it's the sector beneath the Armed Forces responsible for the Engineering work, its missions variety between War and peace time, In War time the authority is responsible for the engineering aid to the Forces, one of the Authority major operations was Operation Badr (1973). In Peace time the authority is responsible in helping build Egypt's infrastructure and the national projects including Cities, stadiums, clubs. In addition to The Financial Authority (FA) responsible for the financial matters in the armed forces and the Research Authority.

The Armed Forces also hold control of Military Judiciary and Military Intelligence Directorate.

In 2011, The Egyptian Armed forces is reported to have more than 468,500 active personnel, in addition to 800,000 personnel available in reserve and over 400,000 paramilitary personnel making it one of the largest armies in the world. The recruitment in Egypt is mandatory for all men who reached the military service age. Only the medical committee formed by the Armed forces can exempt those who they decide as unsuitable for the military service. Men who have no brothers are also exempted.

The inventory of the Egyptian armed forces includes equipment from the United States, France, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and the People's Republic of China. Equipment from the Soviet Union is being progressively replaced by more modern U.S., French, and British equipment, a significant portion of which is built under license in Egypt, such as the M1A2 Abramstank which makes Egypt the owner of the second largest number of latest generation main battle tanks in the region and the first in the case of the older generations. Conscripts for the army and other service branches without a university degree serve three years as enlisted soldiers. Conscripts with a General Secondary School Degree serve two years as enlisted personnel. Conscripts with a university degree serve one year as enlisted personnel or three years as a reserve officer. Officers for the army are trained at the Egyptian Military Academy one of the oldest academies in the world.

The Egyptian Air Force or EAF is the aviation branch of the Egyptian Armed Forces. Currently, the backbone of the EAF is the F-16. The EAF (planes and pilot training) is considered to be the strongest in Africa and one of the strongest in the Middle East. The Mirage 2000 is the other modern interceptor used by the EAF. The Egyptian Air Force has 228 F-16s (plus 12 awaiting delivery) making it the 4th largest operator of the F-16 in the World. It has about 1,100 combat aircraft[27] and 245 armed helicopters.[28] having at least 35 Apache's AH-64D as it also continues to fly extensively upgraded MiG-21s, F-7 Skybolts, F-4 Phantoms, Dassault Mirage Vs, and the C-130 Hercules among other planes. The Air Force is undergoing massive modernization. Mikoyan in late 2014 confirmed that Egypt signed a deal to acquire 24 MiG-29M fighter jets, and is in negotiations to acquire 24 MiG-35 fighter jets[29] and it was reported that Egypt is in negotiations with French Dassault for an initial order of 24 Rafale fighter jets[30]

The Egyptian Air Defense Command or ADF (Quwwat El Diffaa El Gawwi in Arabic) is Egypt's military command responsible for air defense. One of the most powerful air defenses in the world. Egypt patterned its Air Defense Force (ADF) after the Soviet Anti-Air Defenses, which integrated all its air defense capabilities – antiaircraft guns, rocket and missile units, interceptor planes, and radar and warning installations..

US Navy Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate, the same type used by Egypt.

Although the Egyptian Navy is the smallest branch of the military, it is large by Middle Eastern standards. The Egyptian Navy is known to be the strongest in the African continent, and the largest in the Middle East in spite of the rapid growth of other countries' navies within the region.

Some fleet units are stationed in the Red Sea, but the bulk of the force remains in the Mediterranean. Navy headquarters and the main operational and training base are located at Ras el Tin near Alexandria. The current commander is Vice AdmiralOsama El-Gendi.

The Navy also controls the Egyptian Coast Guard. The Coast Guard is responsible for the onshore protection of public installations near the coast and the patrol of coastal waters to prevent smuggling. it has an inventory consisting of about thirty five large patrol craft (each between twenty and thirty meters in length) and twenty smaller Bertram-class coastal patrol craft built in the United States.

Egyptian Rapid deployment forces (RDF) is one of the branches of the Egyptian Armed Forces. It was formed in March 2014 by the former defense minister field marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. It is mainly airborne troops with a special formation, and it is characterized by the ability to perform operations inside and outside the Egyptian mainland. It comprises the most efficient elements of the mechanized Infantry, armored corps, air defense, artillery and anti-tank teams.

Special forces from officers and noncommissioned officers from Infantry, Sa'ka, Paratroopers and Navy can take the Seal course which is considered the most advanced course in the Egyptian Armed Forces.

In addition to importing weapons, Egypt maintains a large industrial fortress as its military industry is considered the most important in the Arab World. State-owned enterprises which are under control of the Armament Authority headed by a major general, are the main domestic producers of Egypt's defense systems.

Arab Organization for Industrialization, which has about 19,000 employees out of which are 1250 engineers, more than nine military factories producing both civilian and military products, is considered Egypt military's most important domestic weapons supplier.

Egypt's Main battle tank the M1 Abrams is made locally under license in addition to Egyptian-Upgraded Ramses II, T-62 and T-45E. Egyptian Military industry includes Sakr Eye missiles, (Nile 23, Sinai 23) Self-propelled air defense, RPGs. K-8E Trainer aircraft, in addition to aircraft overhaul and maintenance.

Egypt, with a history of using weapons of mass destruction, remains one of only four countries not to sign the Chemical Weapons Convention and hasn't ratified the Biological Weapons Convention. Egypt's chemical weapons program is the most developed of its pursuit of developing a Weapons of Mass Destruction program though it is thought this reached its peak in the 1960s. Egypt was one of the few countries to use chemical weapons after WWI during the North Yemen Civil War when phosgene and mustard gas was used against Royalist forces in Northern Yemen. Egypt has maintained a policy of not signing the Chemical Weapons Convention until questions regarding Israel's nuclear weapons program are answered.[31] Egypt signed the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BWC) on April 10, 1972 but has not ratified it.

Prior to signing the BWC President Anwar Sadat of Egypt made the following comment to a question about Israel and should they use Biological weapons.

"The only reply to biological warfare is that we too should use biological warfare. I believe that the density of the Israeli population confined in a small area would provide the opportunity to reply with the same weapon if they should begin using it. Briefly, we have the instruments of biological warfare in the refrigerators and we will not use them unless they begin to use them."[32]

Left: An Egyptian Army M60A1 Tank takes part in a live fire exercise during Exercise BRIGHT STAR '94; Right: Egyptian, Pakistani and American paratroopers during Military Operations in Urban Terrain training at the Mubarak Military City.

The Egyptian Armed forces' different branches are engaged in annually military exercises locally in addition to exercises with different armies including:

The Egyptian Armed Forces established the "The National Service's projects' organization" which has more than 10 sub-companies and factories specialized in public service and civil production including chemicals, Cements, plastics, housing construction, consumer goods and military-owned resorts management.

^KIRKPATRICK, DAVID D.; MAYY EL SHEIKH (December 23, 2012). "Egypt Opposition Gears Up After Constitution Passes". New York Times. Retrieved 26 September 2013. the constitution’s principal defects were not about religion. The biggest problem, he said, is that it protects the Egyptian military from legal and parliamentary oversight, engraving its autonomy in the constitution. Leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood had said privately for months that they were willing to provide the military such constitutional protections in order to ease the transition of power from the generals who assumed control from Mr. Mubarak.

^"Egypt: New Constitution Mixed on Support of Rights". November 30, 2012. Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 26 September 2013. But the latest draft, unlike the earlier version, defers to objections from the country’s military leadership and removes the clear prohibition on trials of civilians before military courts.